“Well, you know that Mark. He’s just thinks we all need to be praising God all the time.” ☺
1 And he (Jesus) began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered unto him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land.
2 And he taught them many things by parables, and said unto them in his doctrine,
3 Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:
4 And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up.
5 And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth:
6 But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit.
8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
9 And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable.
11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:
12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
13 And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?
14 The sower soweth the word.
15 And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts.
16 And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness;
17 And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word’s sake, immediately they are offended.
18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful.
20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.
Mark 4:1-20
I felt pretty weird in bed again last night – this is a strange flu bug. Had a headache, couldn’t think straight, and felt really confused. But, again, (Yay!) the Lord reminded me to begin to praise Him in all things. What a life-infusing difference that made. Thank You, Jesus, for Your amazing faithfulness to me…
Boy, Ann and I had some really good talks during coffee this morning. We talked about not becoming the devil’s POWs; about when God sews the seed of the Gospel in lives; and about how vital it was for God to show us we desperately needed to praise Him in all things to keep our hearts from getting mad at Him, getting hard-hearted and bitter, becoming POWs again. All of our discussion made me think about my praise list. What can I praise God for and what would I not be able (not willing to, really) to praise God for.
Years ago, the list of things I could praise God for, that I was willing to praise God for had nothing on it. Yeah, that’s how bad off I was. As the years went by, God began to show me how valuable it was (It really was a matter of life and death and He encouraged me to choose Life, to choose Jesus) for me to line up with His will. If I didn’t take a step towards being willing to praise Him, I was going to stay the enemy’s POW living in his cage of bitterness, anger, upset, frustrated, no good to anyone, etc. I don’t even remember exactly when I first began to praise God. I remember it wasn’t easy and I still didn’t feel like praising Him. I did it because I knew He wanted me to in order for me to begin to break out of my POW life.
Today, I can still get caught hesitating to praise God in this or that. BUT, He’s faithful to keep my heart soft with the oil He gives me when I praise Him in all things.
What about you? Do you have a list of things you can praise God for? Do you have two lists? One list of things you might be willing to praise Him for and another list you can’t praise Him for? I found that as long as I’m not willing to praise Him about something that I’m in bondage to some degree. And, when I begin to praise Him for that thing, He is faithful to help set me free from the chains that bind me to that thing; from a hardening heart.
I can’t even begin to tell you how important this whole topic is in our walk with Jesus. I now know it’s life or death. Choose life. Choose Jesus and be free.
Ask Jesus’ help in praising Him. He’ll show you how to move everything to your praise list and you’ll be lighter and free in your spirit. Believe me. Believe the Word.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
1 Chronicles 16:34
give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
Philippians 4:6
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.
Psalm 28:7
I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.
Psalm 34:1
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.
Psalm 100:4
God bless,
Mark